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Hayden's fantasy football risers, breakouts, waiver wire sleepers for Week 4 of 2025. Are these unexpected booms legit for Tre Tucker, Hunter Henry, Geno Smith, others?
This NFL season has already given us a lot of quality football to enjoy. Week 3 continued the pattern. The Browns, Buccaneers, Chargers, and 49ers all won exciting contests that came down to their final moments. The best game, though, entailed the Eagles overcoming a 19-point deficit to defeat the Rams 33-26 and advance to 3-0.
We witnessed some great performances for fantasy football as well. Jonathan Taylor dominated the Tennessee defense to the tune of 118 scrimmage yards and three touchdowns in a 41-20 Indianapolis victory. His 31.3 half-PPR points made him the RB1 for the week through Sunday. Some other notable names, including Caleb Williams, Jalen Hurts, and Jordan Mason, also turned in strong showings.
However, some guys who had received less attention entering the week also piled up fantasy points. One such player actually turned out to be Sunday's biggest star. Let's take a look at that Las Vegas wideout, as well as four other unexpected booms from Week 3.
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Tre Tucker, WR, Las Vegas Raiders
Third-year receiver Tre Tucker did not see many targets to open his 2025 campaign. In Week 1, Tucker had only three passes come his way, though he caught two of them for 54 yards and a score. He got more target volume the following week with eight looks, though he converted them into just three grabs for 12 yards.
Without a noteworthy performance to build hype, Tucker was largely overlooked entering Week 3.
Well, that noteworthy performance arrived forcefully on Sunday. Although the Raiders fell 41-24 to the Commanders, Tucker posted a career game. He caught eight of his nine targets for 145 yards and three touchdowns. Tucker also tacked on a touch on the ground for an additional four yards. This was the first 100-yard game of his career, and it was just his second multi-touchdown outing ever.
That's Tre for Tre! 🔥#LVvsWAS | 📺 FOX pic.twitter.com/71B7lW8ecv
— Las Vegas Raiders (@Raiders) September 21, 2025
After Sunday's games, Tucker stands alone atop the weekly WR leaderboard. The gap between Tucker (36.9 half-PPR points) and Week 3's current WR2, Courtland Sutton (20.8 points), is immense. This performance could be a harbinger of a breakout year for the 24-year-old.
Tucker is available in many fantasy leagues. He is worth considering as a waiver target ahead of Week 4. He has 17 targets over the past two weeks, more than teammates Jakobi Meyers (16) and Dont'e Thornton Jr. (8) during that span. His recent volume and big-play-ability make Tucker a viable add in fantasy leagues.
Geno Smith, QB, Las Vegas Raiders
The quarterback passing to Tucker also had a great fantasy day. Geno Smith completed 19 of his 29 pass attempts for 289 yards, three touchdowns, and no interceptions. Smith's 26.06 fantasy points have him as the tentative QB3 for the week entering Monday. This was the sixth-best fantasy performance of his 13-year career.
Tre Tucker doubles up on TDs
LVvsWAS on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/NWZCyzjz9Z
— NFL (@NFL) September 21, 2025
Smith's production comes on the heels of an awful showing against the Chargers on Monday night in Week 2. In that game, Smith mustered only 180 passing yards on 43 attempts, and he also tossed three picks. Notably, Smith found his stride again against Washington on Sunday, and he will look to carry that momentum into Week 4 versus Chicago.
It needs to be pointed out that two of Smith's three touchdowns came in garbage time, however. The Raiders were trailing 34-10 before the Smith-Tucker connection boosted Las Vegas's numbers in the fourth quarter. Moreover, Smith took five sacks and lost 28 yards on them. This context makes his day less pristine than it initially appears.
Smith is one of the better quarterback options out there on waivers in many leagues. Between this outing and his 362-yard game against New England in Week 1, Smith has shown that he can contribute to fantasy teams on at least a QB2 level. However, his inconsistency and his limited rushing production will prevent him from being worth much more than that to fantasy managers.
Hunter Henry, TE, New England Patriots
Veteran tight end Hunter Henry had a decent stat line in Week 1. Facing Las Vegas, he had four catches on eight targets for 66 yards. In Week 2, however, Henry's numbers dropped significantly. He saw only three targets and caught just one for nine yards. Most fantasy managers looked to other options for Week 3 as a result.
Henry got back on track in a big way on Sunday against Pittsburgh, though. He saw 11 targets, of which he caught eight. Henry gained 90 yards on those receptions, too. No one else on the team came close to Henry in any of those categories. Henry also scored the only two touchdowns that the Patriots had in their 21-14 loss to the Steelers.
Hunter Henry has another TD to even the score!
PITvsNE on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/wdboapbwC8
— NFL (@NFL) September 21, 2025
With 25.0 half-PPR points, Henry currently ranks as the TE1 for Week 3 by a large margin. The game marked his best fantasy output since Week 6 of 2019. Suddenly, a lackluster start to the season for Henry has been transformed into a very promising one. This is particularly true if Henry can continue to demonstrate that he is quarterback Drake Maye's most dependable target.
Henry is likely one of the best waiver wire options out there at the tight end position ahead of Week 4. He won't find the end zone twice every week, of course, but his high target volume in Week 3 suggests he is a viable starting TE in fantasy. However, be prepared for plenty of dud weeks mixed in with the boom weeks should you pursue him.
Tory Horton, WR, Seattle Seahawks
Fifth-round rookie receiver Tory Horton did not face high expectations entering this season. While he was a common stash in dynasty leagues, his immediate impact was expected to be minimal. We saw this in Week 1; Horton played 54 percent of Seattle's offensive snaps without seeing a target. In Week 2, his snap share declined to 40 percent, though he caught two passes for 32 yards and a touchdown.
In Week 3, Horton's snap share remained about level (49 percent per PFF). This time, he caught three of his four targets, again for 32 yards. He also scored a receiving touchdown for the second consecutive week.
On top of that, though, Horton returned a punt 95 yards for a touchdown. His contributions were a significant factor in Seattle's 44-13 drubbing of New Orleans.
TORY HORTON GOES 95 YARDS TO THE CRIB!
NOvsSEA on CBS/Paramount+https://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/nwjvDYnnD2
— NFL (@NFL) September 21, 2025
Horton and his 16.7 half-PPR points rank ninth among wide receivers so far this week. Early in his young career, he has shown an ability to reach paydirt. However, Jaxon Smith-Njigba and Cooper Kupp place above Horton in the pecking order with the Seahawks. Horton will need to see more snaps and targets to be valuable in redraft leagues.
Horton is worth taking a swing on in deeper leagues. Eyeing how his involvement fluctuates over the course of the season is worthwhile, as he has done well with the limited opportunities he has gotten. Thus, Horton is not a priority waiver target entering Week 4, but he is undoubtedly an up-and-coming sleeper to monitor.
Luther Burden III, WR, Chicago Bears
Luther Burden III is another rookie receiver, albeit one taken in the second round rather than the fifth. Despite the draft capital, Burden took a backseat to teammates DJ Moore, Rome Odunze, and Olamide Zaccheaus to start the season. Through two weeks, he had not reached a 30 percent snap share, and he had just two catches on three targets for two yards.
Burden did more damage in Week 3, though. While his snap share remained low at 29 percent according to PFF, Burden did more with his time on the field. He caught a 65-yard touchdown pass from Caleb Williams in the first quarter, and he had a 29-yard reception in the second quarter. He finished the day with three receptions on three targets for 101 yards and a score.
Burden also rushed for seven yards on one attempt.
BEARS FLEA FLICKER TD
DALvsCHI on FOX/FOX Onehttps://t.co/HkKw7uXVnt pic.twitter.com/tMeMMgsWEy
— NFL (@NFL) September 21, 2025
Burden scored 18.3 half-PPR points and ranks as the WR6 for Week 3. His low snap and target shares should reduce the hype he receives for this performance, but the game is still an encouraging step in his development. Burden is a talented player who will need to fight to earn more looks, but overtaking the struggling Zaccheaus is on the horizon.
Burden should be stashed in redraft leagues without too high expectations. He is definitely worth rostering outside of shallow leagues, but he will have to see the field more to ascend into starting lineups.
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